NINETEEN DAYS THAT SHOOK NEPAL

Telegraph Nepal

A Book on Landmark Upheavals During Seventy Years of Modern Nepal

The book, to say the least, is a remarkable work. It unfolds the saga of heroic endeavours of Nepalese people and historic compromises among the otherwise ideologically disparate political parties of Nepal as well as the drama of flagrant betrayals of causes by some individual leaders. It tells about modern Nepalese political history starting from 1940 to 2010 A.D, focussing on the epochal 19-day political upheaval of the year 2006 which, eventually, led to the ending of the dynastical Shah monarchy with a 238 years tumultuous history behind it.

In this context the author seriously criticizes the efforts made by the democratic as well as communist ‘historians’ to ignore the anti-Ranarchy movement launched by the Nepal Praja Parishad in the year 1940.He characterizes this distortion of history as an insult to the glorious memory of the martyrs who sacrificed themselves at the altar of the said movement for the cause of liberation of the Motherland from the Rana tyranny. They deliberately forget that this movement was an initiation to the 1951 Revolution.

Arvind Rimal, a one-time communist firebrand of the 1950s and now a political analyst, depicts the series of momentous events of the stated period from an objective leftist stance. This work is also sprinkled with spiritual thoughts in between.He has also made objective assessments about national as well as international figures who happen to associate themselves with the events in Nepal.

With clinching logic and penetrating analysis the writer dwells also on how the felt aspirations of the Nepalese people to pull down the unpopular King Gyanendra’s regime and to put the country back to the track of democracy were diverted to the course to promote the vested interests of some foreign powers such as India, the USA and the member-countries of the European Union. While India has remained all through obsessed by its objective of having its strong impact and influence thoroughly on Nepal’s politics, economy and security matters, the USA does its best to have its own vested interest in the context of its ideological hostility towards China as well as in that of its Tibetan policy. In this respect the author points out China’s watching of Nepal’s political developments with great concerns.

The author draws attention of its readers to the European Union’s interest in proselytizing the poor and ignorant Nepalese populace into Christianity which goes against the norms of international law. This has prompted the EU to exploit UNCP-Maoist for making Nepal a so-called secular State. The author underlines how the INGO-financed democratic and Leftist leadership in contravention of the Joint Declaration of 2006 democratic movement, have consented to such an idea.

The author assesses the seven-day national protest against “unconstitutional step” made by the President started by the Maoists in December 2009 as a bid for a coup d’etat with the blessings from some EU-member countries which ended in a fiasco. In this context, the author passes strictures on Maoists advocacy of “safeguarding national independence” against Indian hegemony on Nepal as an utterly naked power politics.

He asserts that the total contravention and disregard for the norms of human rights, the consideration of peoples’ welfare and time-honored tradition of the country by the Communist leaders of all hues as a hangover from Stalinism.

The author expresses his surprise at how Indian diplomacy was outwitted by the Western strategists in this respect, who regard its cultural and spiritual heritage as a deterrent to their efforts to help escalate what is known as ‘Clashes of Civilization’. In their efforts to destabilize politics in Nepal the Western Powers have used the United Nations’ Mission in Nepal (UNMIN) to achieve their purpose.

The author believes that the county’s present political instability, lawlessness and power vacuum are caused by Western Powers themselves and that Indiahas remained something like a helpless spectator to all these developments as it has also not learned anything from its own involvement in Sri Lankan catastrophe. The unholy political bonhomie of New Delhi with the Nepalese Maoists has proved very costly for the Indian diplomacy. To be precise, the foreign Powers are not interested in the list to have Nepal return to the tracks of constitutional and civil order.

The author asserts in no uncertain terms that all these are due to the doings and undoings of the leaders of all ideological hues, corrupt in all ways themselves who have no sense of public accountability and love for the country.

Author Rimal dwells at length on the history of the continuing betrayal of national interest which dates back to 1950s with the exception of eighteen months of 1955-1956 during which the father of the county’s democratic movement, Tanka Prasad Acharya, as the Prime Minister of Nepal, has played an epochal role in safeguarding the county’s national independence by the pursuance of a balanced foreign policy.

All these developments as well as Maoist Supremo, Pushpa Kamal Dahal alias Prachanda’s rise and fall are depicted in all vivid manners. (Incidentally, it is interesting to note the ridiculous volte-face made by the Maoists to enter into the Jhala Nath Khanal- led government as evidenced by their taking oath of office at the very presence of the President himself whom they had denounced as unconstitutional-Ed)

There are also in the book pen-portraits of five luminaries of Nepalese politics. They include those of King Tribhuwan, Tanka Prasad Acharya, Bishweshore Prasad Koirala, King Mahendra and Pushpa Lal Shrestha, the founder General Secretary of the first Communist Party of Nepal.

While launching the new edition of the book on March 2, 2011, at a public function the Chairman of Constitutional Committee of the Constituent Assembly, Nilamber Acharya underscored the point that modern Nepalese history is recorded in this work and as such it deserves to be studiously read by any person, no matter what his or her political affiliation is.

Last but not the least, the Oxford International Publication Pvt. Ltd, Nepal has rendered a valued service to the nation by bringing out 536 pages book with rare historic as well as tale-telling modern photographs at a relatively low price i.e. Nrs. 350. There are some printing mistakes and technical shortcomings in the book, which could have been easily removed. –Editor

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Comments

Posted on - 2011-06-24 by sale

I hope the author for the sake of his own integrity mentions that the janandolan was fully sponsored by the Indian government - otherwise it would be a fantasy what people read and not fact.

Posted on - 2011-03-12 by Basanta Lohani

I had gone through the first edition of the book, and yet to read this one. I can agree no less with Upadhaya. A firebrand communist the way Arabinda Rimal was, the way he conducted himself as the elected member of the undivided Nepal Communist Party over fifty years ago, and the way he has transcended the spiritual plane have ,in totality, given him a clear focus. Yes, his focus is in preserving the broader national interest of this country, the sensibility of we the nation. He is not concerned about the rest but the vanguards of revolution are fighting day and night for this very rest to climb up in gaining a proxy rule.